It took a moment for the realization to sink in. There on the shelf with a bunch of toilets at the home-supply store was a label with the name "Santa Rosa." That's Santa Rosa . . . as in toilet. The toilet is named Santa Rosa. It never occurred to me that toilets have names. Santa Rosa also is the name of a charming little city in California's wine country. I didn't see any special feature on the toilet, like a merlot holder, that would distinguish this model from, say, Toto's Promenade, a toilet apparently marketed for use on parade floats.

Actress Sandra Bullock married mechanic and reality TV star Jesse James at a ranch near Santa Barbara, according to reports. Bullock, 40, and James, 35, exchanged vows Saturday in front of several hundred guests at Folded Hills Ranch in Santa Ynez Valley's wine country. Guests included actor William Shatner, actresses Jamie Lee Curtis and Regina King, and Metallica lead singer James Hetfield, according to media reports. Many in Hollywood have been surprised at the pairing of the tattooed bad boy James and the on-screen good girl Bullock.

By Story and photos by James F. Quinn, Special to the Tribune | May 29, 2005

If you're a motorcycle fan, you no doubt know all about the Guggenheim Museum's "Art of the Motorcycle" exhibit. You've wandered among the amazing bike displays at the Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum in Birmingham, Ala., and may have ridden to Maggie Valley, N.C., to see historic American machines in Dale Walksler's Wheels Through Time Museum. But have you been to Solvang? Solvang is a charming town about 50 miles north of Santa Barbara, in California's Central Coast region.

Alana K. Bassin, a partner at Bowman & Brooke, a products-liability law firm in Minneapolis, has a simple checklist for her business travels: a suitcase for her business suits, an attache case for her legal papers and an infant seat for her daughter, Talia. Just over a year ago, when Talia was 7 months old, Bassin brought her to a two-week trial in Galveston, Texas, so that she could stick to her nursing schedule. Since then, the pair has hit the road several times, and Bassin, who is about to give birth for a second time, plans to bring both children on business trips in the future.

When it comes to wine country, no one thinks of two drinking buddies cruising from Carbondale to Cairo. But as sideways as it may seem, Illinois' tiny wine industry is about be uncorked in a nationwide promotional campaign. Cash-starved Illinois will spend a half-million dollars on marketing, educating winemakers and beckoning tourists to wineries--mostly in southern Illinois, where peaches far outnumber grapes. "I wish them luck because when I think of Illinois, I don't think of wine," said Robert Smiley, a wine economist at the University of California-Davis, the center of America's wine production.

Winemakers and restaurateurs are reporting soaring business even in what's normally the slow season, ever since the movie "Sideways" sparked a burst of interest in California vintners and the scenic Santa Barbara vineyards where much of the dark comedy takes place. Local merchants are bracing for more visitors after the movie's five Academy Awards nominations. Meanwhile, real-life scenes echoing moments from the film have been playing up and down bucolic Santa Rosa Road ever since the film opened.

Less than an hour's drive northeast of downtown Seattle, the town of Woodinville, once a sleepy rural community, is now home to a growing number of premium wineries. In the heart of this fledgling Napa Valley, Willows Lodge offers a sample of the area's food and wine with its "Taste Woodinville Wine Country" package, good anytime, depending on room and restaurant availability. (Contact: 877-424-3930 or 425-424-3900; www.willowslodge.com) THE DEAL $1,090 per couple. Includes: two nights in a "nicer" room, daily breakfast at the Barking Frog restaurant, dinner at the Barking Frog with a bottle of wine, dinner at The Herbfarm, one evening wine tasting at the hotel's Fireside Lounge, wine tasting at two wineries, all taxes and gratuities.

The tale of two buddies hitting the road and going on a bit of a tear is a plot familiar from countless books and movies. What makes the new "Sideways" film so interesting is the role played by wine in the story. Miles is a wine geek, unsuccessful in marriage and career. Jack is his best buddy, an aging TV actor looking for one last fling before tying the knot. Off the two go for a weekend in Santa Barbara's wine country, one thirsty for some hot wine, the other lusting for some hot women.